Visitor of the Week: Adrian Padron

Meet Adrian Padron of the Meharry Medical College School of Graduate Studies and Research! The doctoral candidate is conducting his work in the lab of CV Dash which utilizes biochemical approaches to understanding the early events of the HIV-1 replication process. Adrian is at Retroviruses, his first in-person meeting since the pandemic, where he had the opportunity to give his first talk titled “Cyclophilin A Promotes HIV-1 Preintegration Complex Function.” It was warmly received by his fellow researchers and he received some direct and “quite invaluable” feedback. But despite this career milestone, being able to meet people from different parts of the world and learning of their work in virology has been what Adrian enjoyed most from his time at CSHL.

Tell us about your research.
My project entails determining the role of the host factor, Cyclophilin A (CypA), on HIV-1 pre-integration complex function. The overarching aim of this study is to determine if CypA has a role in the critical step of vDNA integration.

How did you decide to focus on this area/project?
Although I studied animal physiology as an undergrad, I have always had an interest in microbiology and virology. I spent several years working in various research labs in California and Maryland which gave me an opportunity to explore my research options. When I began my graduate work at Meharry, I was fortunate to be able to further explore my interests rotating in molecular virology research labs.

What and/or who is the inspiration behind your scientific journey?
I was inspired to go on my scientific journey after completing my undergraduate studies as I reflected on my early experiences in life including witnessing the onset of the HIV pandemic when I was young and seeing many people, including my uncle, become infected and lose their life to HIV/AIDS.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
In five years, I hope to continue research and pass on knowledge to others as a university level researcher/instructor.

What do you love most about being a researcher?
One of the things I love most about being a researcher is being able to learn something new and ultimately being able to share it with others.

What drew you to attend this meeting?

The opportunity to be exposed to research from investigators from all over the world is one of the key aspects that drew me to attend this meeting. 

What is your key takeaway from the Meeting; and how do you plan to apply it to your work?

One of the main takeaways from this meeting is that there is still so much to learn about virology which is very exciting! 

What feedback or advice would you share with someone considering to participate in this meeting?

I would most certainly advise anyone considering participating in this meeting to network with other researchers.

What’s the most memorable thing that happened during the Meeting?

There were two wonderful and inspiring keynote talks—Carol Carter and Thomas J. Hope—which were one of the most memorable aspects of this meeting.

Thank you to Adrian for being this week's featured visitor. To meet other featured researchers - and discover the wide range of science that takes part in a CSHL meeting or course - go here.

Image provided by Adrian Padron

Visitor of the Week: Abigail Sarah Jarosz

Meet Abigail Sarah Jarosz of Bowling Green State University! The third year PhD student and member of Dr. Julia Halo’s lab returned for another CSHL Retroviruses meeting where she again gave a poster presentation titled “Expression and fusogenic function of a CfERV lineage in canines”.

Tell us about your research.
I study copies of once-infectious retroviruses that arose from germline infection known as endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), which act as a ‘fossil record’ of past infections providing a unique resource to examine virus-host evolution. I believe these fossils in the canine host may be the key to understanding why there appears to be no circulating retroviruses in any modern canids.

How did you decide to focus on this area/project?
Despite their being constantly challenged from numerous exogenous retroviruses, retroviral infection has not been observed in the domestic dog or any contemporary canid. This truly boggles my mind and I hope to help characterize what this purging mechanism is and how it has evolved.

What and/or who is the inspiration behind your scientific journey?
When I started high school, my family got a Golden Retriever named Sammy. We had a very close relationship through thousands of hours spent walking, cuddling, and of course, playing ball. Sammy solidified my love for dogs (although I love all dogs, he was the very best) and motivates me to work on my research. I will always be grateful for the time we had together.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
To be honest, I am not exactly sure where I see myself in five years. I do know I will continue to do research and ask questions that, when answered, will help expand our understanding of life.

What do you love most about being a researcher?
I love being able to explore science and how I am always learning new things. I am lucky to have an advisor who is extremely supportive of me and encourages the exploration of different research avenues.

What drew you to attend this meeting?
With my research, understanding retroviruses and the subsequent host response is essential. This meeting covers many of the different components that make up my project.

What is your key takeaway from the Meeting; and how do you plan to apply it to your work?
In the question of why canines are elusive to retroviruses, I just started to get into restriction factors. This meeting presented some amazing new research that I can learn from while I begin to characterize restriction factors in canines.

What feedback or advice would you share with someone considering to participate in this meeting?
My advice to anyone considering participating in this meeting is to ask questions and seek out some research that may not appear to be in your “area”. Both of those things are the best way to learn, meet new people, and think about your own project from a different perspective.

What’s the most memorable thing that happened during the Meeting?
So far, I would say that the most memorable part of this meeting has been the poster sessions. It is always amazing to see all the cool research people are working on. I am also very excited for the talks this Friday during the ERVs and Pathogenesis session -- it looks like a great line up of talks!

What and/or who is the inspiration behind your scientific journey?
When I started high school, my family got a Golden Retriever named Sammy. We had a very close relationship through thousands of hours spent walking, cuddling, and of course, playing ball. Sammy solidified my love for dogs (although I love all dogs, he was the very best) and motivates me to work on my research. I will always be grateful for the time we had together.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
To be honest, I am not exactly sure where I see myself in five years. I do know I will continue to do research and ask questions that, when answered, will help expand our understanding of life.

What do you love most about being a researcher?
I love being able to explore science and how I am always learning new things. I am lucky to have an advisor who is extremely supportive of me and encourages the exploration of different research avenues.

What drew you to attend this meeting?
With my research, understanding retroviruses and the subsequent host response is essential. This meeting covers many of the different components that make up my project.

What is your key takeaway from the Meeting; and how do you plan to apply it to your work?
In the question of why canines are elusive to retroviruses, I just started to get into restriction factors. This meeting presented some amazing new research that I can learn from while I begin to characterize restriction factors in canines.

What feedback or advice would you share with someone considering to participate in this meeting?
My advice to anyone considering participating in this meeting is to ask questions and seek out some research that may not appear to be in your “area”. Both of those things are the best way to learn, meet new people, and think about your own project from a different perspective.

What’s the most memorable thing that happened during the Meeting?
So far, I would say that the most memorable part of this meeting has been the poster sessions. It is always amazing to see all the cool research people are working on. I am also very excited for the talks this Friday during the ERVs and Pathogenesis session -- it looks like a great line up of talks!

Thank you to Abigail for being this week's featured visitor. To meet other featured researchers - and discover the wide range of science that takes part in a CSHL meeting or course - go here.

Images provided by Abigail Sarah Jarosz

Visitor of the Week: Dung Nguyen

Meet Dung Nguyen of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences! The Vietnamese national is a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Marzena Pazgier’s lab who recently took part in his first CSHL meeting: Retroviruses. At this year’s virtual meeting, he also presented a poster entitled “Structure-based design of antibody conjugates sensitizing HIV-infected cells to Fc-effector mechanism”. Before we jump into the Q&A, here is what Dung had to say of his experience:

First of all, this is my first virtual meeting! It exceeded my expectation, really well-organized and professional. I got to check out more posters on my own time which I couldn’t do with the in-person format. I want to thank all the organizers for a successful virtual meeting and I hope that we will be able to meet next year so I can check out the beautiful Cold Spring Harbor campus.     

Tell us about your research.
Our group has multiple projects that focus on HIV-1 prevention and treatment through development of new vaccines and anti-HIV-1 therapeutics. Specifically, my research focuses on the structure-based development of antibody-small compound/peptide mimic conjugate therapeutics that will be capable of eliminating HIV-infected cells in HIV-infected individuals through antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) response.

How did you decide to focus on this area/project?
In my PhD, I have prepared and assessed immunogenicity of multiple protein-glycopeptide conjugates as HIV vaccine candidates. I have learned and become increasingly interested in HIV vaccine and protein conjugation. Moving on to my postdoc, I continue working on HIV research developing bifunctional, site-specific antibody conjugates, while getting trained in structural biology methods such as X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM.

What and/or who is the inspiration behind your scientific journey?
I am thrilled to have an opportunity to work on exciting projects in Dr. Pazgier’s lab. My postdoc projects are aligned perfectly with my interest and it’s also helpful that Dr. Pazgier is an amazing mentor, friendly and knowledgeable. She gives me great advice and always encourages me to ask more questions and is not afraid to let me explore new ideas. I am learning so much from her and all of my wonderful colleagues in our lab.

What impact do you hope to make through your work?
Through my work, I hope to gain a better understanding of the molecular basis of the function of anti-HIV-1 Env antibodies, particularly, those new antibody conjugates that are involved in Fc-mediated effector functions.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
During this unprecedented time, it is hard to predict where I will be. Nonetheless, in five years time, I see myself becoming a well-trained professional in protein engineering, structural biology and structure-based therapeutic design. 

What do you love most about being a researcher?
What I love most about being a researcher is flexibility and creativity. I love that, when facing a problem, we are able to come up with a hypothesis, then design experiments to test the hypothesis in order to figure out the solution. I think, in science, there is no visible boundary and the process of knowledge flowing from one field to another field always amazes me. As a scientist, we are able to obtain new ideas from one field and apply them to another field. There is still so much to learn.

What drew you to attend this meeting?
What drew me to the Retroviruses meeting was the diversity of all the amazing research presented here. In my PhD and postdoc research, most of my work focuses on the HIV envelope gp120 trimer. Thus, this meeting provides an amazing platform that I can listen to all the experts in the field presenting their works and learn from them.

What is your key takeaway from the Meeting; and how do you plan to apply it to your work?
Participating in the meeting has expanded my knowledge beyond my own field of expertise. I am excited to come back next year and see everybody’s progress.

What feedback or advice would you share with someone considering to participate in this meeting?
Don’t be afraid to reach out, ask questions and connect with other experts in the fields.

What’s the most memorable thing that happened during the Meeting?
The most memorable thing that happened during the meeting was that I got to listen to many great talks especially the 2 keynote speakers: Dr. Dennis Burton and Dr. Anna Marie Skalka whose scientific journeys and contributions have inspired not just me but all the participants.

Thank you to Dung for being this week's featured visitor. To meet other featured researchers - and discover the wide range of science that takes part in a CSHL meeting or course - go here.

Visitor of the Week: Alzbeta Dostalkova

Meet  Alzbeta Dostalkova of the University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague (Czechia). She is part of the lab of Dr. Michaela Rumlová within the Department of Biotechnology. The PhD student is at CSHL for her first-ever meeting – Retroviruses – and she immediately felt “professional and intimate environment to meet and discuss research with colleagues” for which CSHL meetings have become well-known. Alzbeta also presented a poster entitled “Quantification of stability effect of polyanions on assembly and disassembly of retroviral particles” that was met by many and produced many friendly and helpful discussions.

What are your research interests? What are you working on?
Generally, I am focused on the steps closely related with the assembly of retroviruses such as HIV-1 and M-PMV. I am working on uncovering the mechanism of viral genomic RNA incorporation to the assembling particle and next phase of my study is newly stability of the particles, especially of the core.

How did you decide to make this the focus of your research?
When I started to study, protein-RNA interactions was a very cool topic in the retrovirological world, so my supervisor and I decided to keep the focus on this theme.  And I really like it.

How did your scientific journey begin?
I have always wanted to help people and I thought that synthesis of drugs would be the right path for me So, at the university, I started studying the biotechnology of drugs. But then after a few months, I became interested in HIV-1 and the problems connected with this retrovirus. When I found out that I can be part of the lab studying HIV-1 and directly help to fight against it, I knew I found my goal.

Was there something specific about the 2019 Retroviruses meeting that drew you to attend?
I have dreamed of participating in this conference for years because it is attended by many of the retrovirologists want to meet. To read their papers and then have opportunity to meet and discuss with them their work is something I very much appreciate. The atmosphere at this meeting is that of a real retrovirological conference.

What is your key takeaway from the meeting?
I have heard a lot of very interesting lectures – by Akhil Chameettachal, Thomas J. Hope, Alan Rein, and Chaoyi Xu in particular – which will help me in my research.  In addition, the chance to meet others in my field. The world of retrovirology is full of very interesting and well-known researchers who  are also very nice people.

What did you pick up or learn from the meeting that you plan to apply to your work?  What did you pick up or learn from the meeting that you plan to apply to your work?  
I found out more facts about IP6. For example, IP6 plays a role during the trimerization of matrix domain of HIV-1 and IP6 promotes the dNTPs import. Moreover, the nucleocapsid domain contains the interfaces critical for Gag dimerization. I have also heard a few crucial facts about gRNA incorporation, uncoating etc.

If someone curious in attending a future iteration of this meeting asked you for feedback or advice on it, what would you tell him/her?
Go. Definitely. This is a prestigious conference which gives more than you expect. The data presented are high-level and excellent, and participating in the CSHL Retroviruses meeting helps ensure you are doing your retrovirological research correctly. And, to some degree, this meeting has a certain “cool factor” that rubs off on you.

What do you like most about your time at CSHL?
I like to walk here because it is beautiful! It is also a great setting for socializing and I have enjoyed talking with new and old friend.

Thank you to Alzbeta for being this week's featured visitor. To meet other featured scientists - and discover the wide range of science that takes part in a CSHL meeting or course - go here.

Visitor of the Week: Jordan Becker

Meet Jordan Becker of the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Jordan recently joined Reuben Harris’ lab as a postdoc after earning his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison last October. He received the Uta von Schwedler Prize last year and returned again this year – his third, consecutive Retroviruses meeting – to present a talk titled "Subcellular distribution of APOBEC3 proteins regulate interactions with and restriction of HIV-1".

What are your research interests? What are you working on?
Viruses are the world's best cellular biologists: they are amazing at learning how to manipulate their hosts. Much in that way, I'm a cellular biologist who has used viruses to understand how cells function and how viruses hijack, avoid, or remove cellular factors. More specifically, I study viral RNA trafficking, interactions with cellular RNA-binding proteins, and how a family of nucleic acid mutating enzymes (APOBEC3 proteins) lead to viral mutation and evolution.

How did you decide to make this the focus of your research?
I completed my PhD with Nathan Sherer and became adept at fluorescence microscopy to, literally, observe how fluorescent versions of viral and cellular proteins and RNAs move in cells. As the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words” and seeing where things are in cells and how viruses can mess that up are powerful. However, being able to quantify those images and support my observations with traditional biochemical methods (e.g. blots, PCR, infectivity assays) is even more powerful. To be fair I like the way I study RNA trafficking just as much as the field and results themselves.

How did your scientific journey begin? 
Prior to beginning   my PhD, I worked first as an undergraduate researcher then as a technician in a cancer immunology lab with Douglas McNeel. I processed blood samples and performed functional immune assays from clinical trials in prostate cancer patients. I enjoyed working with translational/clinical samples that could inform patient health as well as tell us about cancer immunology. More than that, I really learned to love the academic environment with great graduate students, postdocs, fellows, and my first mentor Doug. His lab was a place where happy people thought about interesting ideas; and as I've worked in other labs, I have always found broad curiosity and interesting/creative ideas to be one of the most important features of a lab! That was the case with Nate Sherer and my graduate lab coworkers, and it continues in my new lab with Reuben Harris. 

Was there something specific about the Retroviruses meeting that drew you to attend?
The retrovirus community is intense but also quite friendly. The CSHL Retroviruses meeting is an amazing venue to both incite and settle controversies – some again and again. Science is iterative and by knowing the history of the field and returning to interesting ideas we can gain insight into what has been done right and what can be done better.

What is your key takeaway from the meeting? 
For me, the key takeaway is it’s time to take imaging of HIV RNA trafficking and RNA-binding proteins to a new level. There’s definitely an expectation or hope to keep trying new experiments in more relevant cell types and with diverse viral strains. I’ll see how that goes!

What did you pick up or learn from the meeting that you plan to apply to your work?  
I really enjoyed the recent fluorescent microscopy performed by the Markus Thali lab using lightsheet microscopy to image HIV-1 lymphocytes over long periods of time, and work by Collin Kieffer using multiscale imaging techniques to look at sites HIV-1 assembly in humanized mice. I'm always excited of new ways to look deeper and see more.  

If someone curious in attending a future iteration of this meeting asked you for feedback or advice on it, what would you tell him/her?
Come, bring your data and love for virology (and coffee and beer). The scientists who attend this meeting are all incredibly friendly, creative, brilliant, and always willing to settle disagreements over a beer.

How many CSHL meetings have you attended?
This is my third CSHL meeting – all Retroviruses (2016, 2017, and 2018). 

What do you like most about your time at CSHL?
CSHL is like going to summer camp. You're here, you're not going anywhere else, and you meet amazing new friends. I like to go for walks along the bay or out to the end of Bungtown Road, and have lunch out on the lawn to work on my tan. 

Thank you to Jordan for being this week's featured visitor. To meet other featured scientists - and discover the wide range of science that takes part in a CSHL meeting or course - go here.